Important facts about Gonorrhoea

Gonorrhea is a sexually transmitted disease (STD). You get it from having sex with someone who is infected with it. Some people call it “the clap.” Gonorrhea usually causes pain and other symptoms in your genital tract, but it can also cause problems in your rectum, throat, eyes, or joints. Both men and women can get it, though men get it more often than women. The causative agent is Neisseria gonorrhoeae bacteria, that easily grow and multiply in the body's mucous membranes.

The gonorrhea bacteria can be found in warm and moist areas of human reproductive tract, such as the uterus, fallopian tubes and cervix of women as well as in the urethra of both men and women. These organisms also infect the anus, mouth and throat of people.
Gonorrhea can be passed on from one individual to another via oral, vaginal or anal sex. The infection is likely to spread when people engage in sexual intercourse with numerous partners or when they have unprotected sex.

How should you deal with it?
To know if you have gonorrhoea, you must know about the symptoms. For women, this includes observing your regular discharge, any unusual bleeding down below, pain during sex or when passing urine. For men, look for discharge from the penis or bottom, pain when peeing and pain in the testicles. If you’re showing any of these symptoms, don’t delay: head to your sexual health clinic and get it checked out.

If you have no symptoms developed, remember gonorrhoea may be in its initial “silent phase”. In such cases, gonorrhoea screening is a super straight-forward option which involves a simple urine sample for men and a self-taken vaginal swab for women.

Getting screening and treatment for Gonorrhoea is simple: you can get it prescribed from any private doctor practising in clinic. A lot of private clinics in London like IPSA Medical provide such services.

If you are diagnosed with gonorrhoea, further tests will be taken to look at the infection and ensure that you are given the right treatment. Also, unprotected sex should be completely avoided especially for new sex partners.
The ‘facts’ about Gonorrhoea

1. Gonorrhoea is spread between people by means of genital, oral or anal sex. Gonorrhoea bacteria grow in the reproductive tract, especially in the cervix, uterus and fallopian tubes in women, and in the urethra, mouth, throat and anus in both men and women.

2. Gonorrhoea cannot be spread by normal physical contact, nor can it be contracted from toilet seats, sharing eating utensils or swimming pools because the bacteria do not survive outside the body for very long.

3. Gonorrhoea symptoms usually become evident withi
14 days of infection, but many people may not show any obvious symptoms.

4. Symptoms include:
In women:
• Vaginal discharge
• A burning sensation when urinating
• Heavier periods and bleeding between periods

In men:
• A white, yellow or green discharge from the penis
• A burning sensation when urinating
• Inflammation of the foreskin
• Swollen testiclesr
In both men and women:
• Infection in the rectum, eyes or throat
• Conjunctivitis

5. If left untreated, gonorrhoea may cause pelvic inflammatory disease in women and infertility in both men and women. It may also make you more susceptible to HIV/Aids.

6. For treatment of gonorrhoea, your clinician will prescribe antibiotics (e.g. azithromycin and doxycycline) along with a follow-up test to ensure if the infection has been cured. Treatment is usually effective if the disease is treated promptly, but may cause lifelong complications if not diagnosed and addressed in time.